Episcopal Church Approves Rite to Bless Same-Sex Unions

The Episcopal Church approved a policy on Tuesday that will allow priests, with their bishop’s permission, to conduct services bestowing the church’s blessing on same-sex couples, regardless of whether or not they live in a state where gay marriage is legal, reports the Times. According to CNN, the Episcopal Church, which has nearly 2 million members in the U.S., is now the largest denomination in the States to officially sanction same-sex relationships. But the liturgy is not a marriage rite. Rather, the three-year trial run of the service will be called, “The Witnessing and Blessing of a Lifelong Covenant.”

“We have authorized a blessing, and a blessing is different than a marriage,” said Nancy Davidge, the church’s media affairs representative. “A blessing is a theological response to a monogamous, committedrelationship.”

“This is significant because it’s saying, ‘This is around to stay — this is not a passing fad,’” Mary A. Tolbert, founding director of theCenter for Lesbian and Gay Studiesin Religion and Ministry at Pacific School of Religion, told the Times. “It’s making a statement about the continued presence of gay and lesbian people among the congregations of the Episcopal Church, and that their lives need to be marked by liturgy aswell.”

It’s been a big year for statements supporting same-sex couples: Last month a group of 300 Mormon church members marched for the first time in the Utah Gay Pride Parade in Salt Lake City, Utah; and of course, in May, Barack Obama became the first sitting president to publicly announce his support for gay marriage (once he had fully evolved on theissue).